


The Escape

by Silverne



Series: Apheleon Chronicles [2]
Category: Dragon Nest (Video Game)
Genre: Body Horror, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-11-08 16:08:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17984351
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverne/pseuds/Silverne
Summary: The caged bird tries to flee, but finds that weak wings only make it easier to freefall to the ground.





	The Escape

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on April 8, 2015 on [Tumblr](http://xsilvie.tumblr.com/post/115837367270/dn-the-escape).

It was dark, and they were only barely able to see where they were going, but they moved forward, trying their best to keep their feet from entangling with the growth. They could hear the angry shouting from behind them getting closer and closer, and there was also the neighing of horses. Hikaru cursed; how were they supposed to outrun that?

What went wrong with their calculations? This was supposed to be a flawless escape. In the morning they would all be surprised that they had gone missing, and he and the Prince would be far, far away by then, out of everyone's reach --

There was a whooshing sound, immediately followed by a sharp pain in his left shoulder. He grimaced, but he forced himself to keep moving. He could feel his arm getting number by the second…

"Hi-Hikaru--!"

"Don't stop running!"

His heart beat fast as he squinted at the wall in the distance. They were barely twenty feet away. If he could -- if they could -- just get through this last stretch --!

Hikaru fell onto the ground with a strangled yelp of pain as an arrow went through his thigh.

This was bad.

"Hikaru!"

The Prince stopped and knelt at his side, quickly surveying the assassin's wound.

"You should go on ahead --"

"If I leave you behind they'll kill you," the Prince cut off, as he quickly murmured a healing spell.

The sound of hooves was ever so close, along with the sound of angry voices --

He bit his lip. "Hieratia, I'm sorry."

"Eh--?"

When the Light Fury stood up he pulled the Inquisitor close to him, dagger to his throat as they faced their pursuers.

"Don't get any closer or the Prince gets hurt!"

It was the last thing they could do at this point, and his insides were screaming in protest; he knew Hieratia still had nightmares. Painfully, slowly, Hikaru inched backwards towards the wall, the Prince in tow as their pursuers stopped at their tracks.

Twenty feet. They just had to last that twenty feet. The Prince was trembling in his arms, his vision was getting blurry and his grip was slipping --

A sharp blow from behind sent Hikaru falling forward, completely losing his balance and the dagger sinking into Hieratia's neck --

The voices started to get muffled, as he lay on the soft earth, but they were all shouting and seemed rather panicked. He felt heavy... Was it because of the drugged arrows, or was it from the several castle guards who was pinning him down?

"Hikaru! Hikaru! Stop! Let him go!"

Hieratia's voice sounded above everything, as the Prince held tightly onto his hand despite that wound on his neck bleeding profusely. He wished he could squeeze back the Prince's hand in assurance but his entire body felt completely numb...

Their fingers being forcefully separated was the last thing Hikaru remembered before he blacked out.

 

* * *

 

When he came to, he lying down on something cold, cold shackles firmly holding him into place when he tried to move.

“Ah good, you’re awake.”

His insides turned icy cold when he realized whose voice that was.

The castle executioner.

Hikaru suddenly realized that he was inside one of the underground dungeons. Several torches lit the grimy walls, the patterns on them looking like blood splatters…

Was he going to be killed? What he did was considered treason, after all. His eyes darted around the room, looking for a way to escape --

“Ohoho, don’t worry, boy.” There was a cruel smile on the executioner’s face. “Did you know? The Prince groveled on his hands and knees just so you would be spared from the gallows.”

Hikaru stopped his search of the room and looked at the executioner, sizing him up if he was just provoking a response out of him.

“But the King wouldn’t just let you off so easily, so he had to make an example out of you…”

The executioner picked up something from the table of deadly weapons. It was a small dagger. It looked rusted and dull, but with enough force…

“W-What are you doing--”

He couldn’t keep the fear out of his voice. Things like uncertainty didn’t play well with him. He struggled against the shackles futilely, until a pounding from the thick metal door to the outside made both heads turn towards it.

“I AM YOUR PRINCE AND I ORDER YOU TO STOP!”

It was Hieratia.

“HIKARU! HIKARU!”

“I’m sorry, Prince, but my orders are from the King,” the executioner said, but it was more for Hikaru than as a reply to the Prince. “Now, keep your eyes wide open, ex-Royal Butler.”

The first blow was so fast he didn’t even see it, but the pain that came after was intense.

He screamed, and screamed, he wanted to close his eyes but at the same time he couldn’t.

He saw as his vision was soon distorted into nothingness, from one eye to the other.

And the pounding from the door was ever so loud, and the shouting was mixed with wailing…

 

* * *

 

It was hard to tell how much time had passed when everything was in darkness. And he had to get used to this darkness now, for he would never see light again.

He was alone in the prison cell held him, in the deepest part of the dungeons in the castle. It was unbelievably cold at times, and the air was always filled with the squeaking of mice, and the sound of dripping water from somewhere.

He counted the days with the number of times Estaire visited him. It was the Saint who updated him about the goings-on in the castle, especially of the aftermath of their attempted escape.

It was going to be framed as a kidnapping. As far as all official records went, Hikaru was executed in private.

The Prince’s trauma was triggered by the entire ordeal, and he hadn’t eaten much since, and he locked himself in his room, refusing to speak with anyone.

Hikaru leaned back on the cold, rough wall as he let the helplessness wash over him.

It was his fault everything has come to this.

There was the sound of a metal door swinging in the distance, and footsteps. It was probably Estaire… it would be his sixth visit now. Roughly a week or so had passed since…

He listened more carefully when he heard the irregularity in the footsteps. There was---

Estaire was with another person--

“Someone is here to meet you, Hikaru.”

_Hieratia --_

Hikaru scrambled on his knees for the thick metal bars that kept him inside the cell, and he felt familiar warm hands over his.

He felt too overwhelmed with emotions to speak, to notice that Hieratia had let go, and to process that the metal grates were easing up.

The tight hug that followed felt so unreal. Hikaru’s hand fumbled around to find the Prince’s face, to caress his cheek, only to find that they were wet.

“Ah, are you crying…?”

He pulled away briefly, and gently wiped Hieratia’s silent tears with a thumb. “Please don’t cry for my sake,” he said, as his hands trailed down Hieratia’s neck, where he imagined his blade would’ve pierced. “I’m sorry for putting you through all of this.”

He was met with more silence.

“Aren’t you going to talk to me…?”

His hand moved from the Prince’s face to his hair, and he took in its length and silkiness into memory. The Prince remained silent, and the only response he gave to his question was to sink back into his arms. Hikaru didn’t press any further, and just enjoyed this bit of warmth that he hadn’t had in a while.

It wasn’t long until he felt the Prince’s body becoming less tense, his tight hold loosening.

“He finally fell asleep, huh…”

It was Estaire. Hikaru looked up at the source of the voice.

“Please take him back to his room, it’s hardly comfortable here.”

There was the sound of movement, and Hieratia’s dead weight was eased off of him by the Saint.

“That’s the first time in several days that I’ve seen him look so peaceful, you know?” In his mind, Hikaru could imagine Estaire wearing a small, relieved smile. “I’ll try to get him here as much as I can,” the Saint continued. “Take care of yourself for now, Hikaru.”

“Thank you, Estaire.”

He listened as the footsteps slowly died in the distance, and he leaned back against the wall. A deep sigh escaped his lips, as he tried to etch that sensation into memory. It was that one thing he could look forward to, one thing that he could cling onto for sanity.

_I would’ve liked to hear his voice since I can’t see him anymore, but…_

He allowed himself a small smile as he curled up, trying to preserve that feeling of warmth.

_That was good enough for me._


End file.
